It was April 28, 2015 when Scott wrote an email (which is pretty momentous in and of itself), he included a picture with the note "Guess what I found? A whole box of childhood!" And sure enough, it was! Oh the memories music can create! "Little Red Caboose" is probably the most remembered song for the Westra siblings (at least for the older four kids). I remember we would take the square case and use it for a "wheel" as we "chug, chug, chugged" around the front room. Even in today's tech-savvy world, I'd been unable to find a copy of the Chip 'n Dale version of the song we loved.
So ... take the train back to childhood. Chug, chug chug! (click HERE for video)
Father's Day 2020 ... this was the 14th annual group gathering in Scott and Amy's backyard. It's been held every year since 2006. Ironically (per the pandemic) this was probably the largest group there has been. There were even two dogs in attendance. The traditional family photo was first up on the docket (as Kellen had to leave for work) ... and there were going to be some water wars, so best to get it done before the kids got all wet.
Blackham's brought Grayson's super cool water balloon filler - a nice set up where eight balloons can be filled at a time, with on/off spouts to keep the H20 in some control. Chris brought a bunch of baby balloons (and Jen brought some big ones). So there was tossing, chasing, throwing and launching, as Chris brought his "launcher" to fling them high in the sky.
Cornhole is a favorite, with the Blackham Bunch especially. The girls liked the hula hoops, and of course there was plenty of food and dessert for all (and the dogs were begging everyone for scraps).
The Jensen's performed a rendition of "Oh My Father" with voice and bells ...
Perfect for Father's Day! Videos below!
... and some family fun in action!
... and let's not forget Scott's poetic invitation!
When we were kids Dad often had little songs and sayings that he would share with us. One of these was a little Dutch Christmas Song called "SinterKlaas Kapoentje." I asked Dad to share the lyrics of this song (with the correct spelling) and he sent me this information:
Here is the little song they sing in Holland on Zinterklaas Dag, which is on the 5th of December.
This is how it is spelled in Dutch (Nederlands).
SinterKlaas Kapoentje
Gooij wat in mijn schoentje
Gooij wat in mijn larsje
Dank ja SinterKlarsje
Here is how we might pronounce it in some kind of phonetic way.
SinterKlaas Kapoontcha
Go-ee vat in mine schoontcha
Go-ee vat in mine larssha
Dank ya SinterKlarsha
Here is a translation in English.
SinterKlaas You little elf
Throw something in my little shoe
Throw something in my little boot
Thank you little SinterKlaas
Gooij = throw
Wat = something
Schoentje = little shoe
Larsje = little boot
Rick recently did a podcast of both Mom and Dad and Dad actually sang THIS SONG in his podcast! Dad starts to explain the background of this song around (9 minutes and 40 seconds into the podcast and then sings it! ) I think most of the Westra kids have this song memorized!
My Dad has some wooden shoes from his mission that we would often use for Show and Tell at school. Jeni is wearing them in this picture at our Girl Scout Cultural Night:
I think this picture was taken on Dad's mission. It shows the Dutch people wearing wooden shoes.
Perhaps we were celebrating Netherland traditions with my primary class in 1975 when we placed all of our shoes outside the classroom and then later found them filled with treats!
1975: Wendy's Primary Class in the Cottonwood 11th Ward (Teacher DeLora Gould)
There have been pictures posted of the outside of the Havenmoor House ... and here's a peek at inside the garage. Garages can get crazy, and I've definitely seen worse. There is an extra fridge and a couple freezers. All sorts of stuff hanging from pegboard along the walls. Shelves holding all sorts of stuff, some organized in apple boxes. Look at all those racquets! That blue metal shelving unit (below) I remember from the Hermitage House. It was right outside the basement backdoor, under the deck. I remember we kept all the "newspaper logs" stacked in it (newspaper logs were papers soaked in water then rolled up and then used in the fireplace instead of wood).
In 2018, Grayson did a complete redo of the Blackham garage. He spent quite a bit of time (and money) but anyone who has ever seen it is quite impressed. Do you know who else was impressed? Grandma and Grandpa. Probably a little more Grandma ... she decided it was time that the Westra garage was reworked as well.
Here's a peek at Gray's Garage ...
Thus started a big job at the Westra home (well ... garage). A lot of things given or thrown away. Shelves emptied and repainted. Recreating some of the same look with the Gladiator shelving and wood paneling, getting a similar wheeled drawer and some nice big lockers. Crates to replace all the apple boxes, and Grayson even broke out his (up until then unused) CriCut machine to make matching labels for the crates.
... a little look at some of the changes
Some pictures Derek took while over working ...
We need some "after" shots when it was ALL done.
Grandpa doesn't spend quite as much time in his garage as Gray does, he's more known for his love of working in the yard. His pond and plants and buckets ... and holes. In fact, Grandpa has the ULTIMATE hole, a CAVE. It's under the deck. He built a nice set of stone stairs down to his cave entrance (and to the basement backdoor). The stability of the cave got to be a bit worrisome, so some time and money was spent reinforcing the walls and shoring things up.
Chris helped set up the construction, getting bids and deciding which route to take to ensure no cave collapse. After the workers came and did their job they told him " We appreciated serving you. We are here to handle any future cave projects. Keep digging." Future cave projects ;) Dad did once have dreams of having a raquetball court under the house/garage ...
Derek got a little song idea in his head ... Stairway to, instead of Heaven ... to Nowhere. He actually took the time to write the words down, and then to record it. He gave me the clips to work up into a video, and here it is ... Stairway to Nowhere!
Stairway to Nowhere
There’s a man named LaMar
And he works very hard
And he’s building the stairway to nowhere
When he gets there he knows
He can store potatoes
And hoses and junk from anywhere
Oh, oh oh oh, and he’s building the stairway to nowhere
On Wednesday, March 15, 2017, Chris sent out an invitation for a hike ...
Kadan and Dad (Grandpa) and I are hiking up the Mt. Olympus trail tomorrow. We will meet at Dad's house at 2:15 or at the trailhead on Wasatch Blvd. at 2:30. On the chance that any of you can come, you are all invited. Kadan and I will be hiking until about 5:00. Dad may turn back earlier if he needs to. The first part of the hike will be hot and exposed, and we will get up into the snow eventually. We probably won't make the summit in that time frame, but we will have a good time. There are usually rock climbers at Pete's rock near the trailhead, if Amy wants to come practice her rappelling skills. No catching allowed.
We will have awards for the fastest hiker, the best looking hiker, the oldest hiker, and the skinniest hiker. All winners will be able to attend Camden's percussion concert that evening at Riverview Junior High.
No one else was able to make it, so it was just the three guys going up (and down). There was a follow-up email with the pictures attached, but no other details of the day. Didn't the guys know there would be a blog post about it some day? A future hike to Timp in the summer would get a few more people involved.
Here's the recap Chris sent in his next email update ...
Kadan was off school for Spring Break and came up Wednesday. Thursday he and I drove to Salt Lake to go on a hike with Grandpa. We picked him up and then drove up to the Mt. Olympus trail, starting about 2:20. We planned to hike until about 5:00, so we would have time to get ready for Camden’s Percussion Concert that evening. It was a super nice day, and there were lots of other hikers. I left them after a while, and started running. I got about 3/4 of the way to the top, maybe 4/5 of the way. I was up pretty high and getting into the snow. I met one group coming down and they made it to the top, and said it was pretty slick. Their shoes and the lower part of their pants were wet, and I really didn’t want to run down with wet shoes. So I turned around and headed down, and met Kadan and Grandpa a short ways after the stream. I hiked with them for a while, and then explored the Bonneville Shore Line trail and took a loop on that to the bottom. 18,000 steps by the end of the day. 243 floors.
Before I found the emails memory**, I asked Chris about the photo and this was his present day (2020) recollection ... "I remember it was a fun hike, and very warm for March. It was one of my last strong Mountain runs before I got so weak in April and then diagnosed with cancer, with three surgeries over the summer. "
... and here's a picture of after the percussion concert (with a few more attendees).
... not quite as physically demanding as hiking Mt. Olympus!
** The WestraWriteOn blog is a collection of correspondence between the Westra family from years past. Be sure to check it out too. Chris's entire letter from this week in 2017 is included here.
Wendy had gone to Snow College and had such a good experience, especially enjoying the singing group LDSingers. That was a big part in the decision of where I went to school (that, and the full tuition + fees/books + housing scholarship swayed me toward Snow). I made it into the singing group and that helped a lot socially, having that group of friends (as I hadn't really known anyone at the college going in). There were four marriages from this year (just for my own memory, John/JanelleWilmore, Dale/JanelleThompson, Ruel/TresaHaymond, Mike/JenniferFrishknect). I dated a couple of the guys myself (going from tenor to bass).
My second year at Snow, I was again in the LDSingers group. As some of the guys had been in the group, gone on a mission, and then come back to Snow, there was a bit of an overlap between Wendy and I. Some fellows she knew from her time there from before their missions, I knew after they had returned. The director Brother Wilmore was there all through the years of course!
Having made friends last year, and getting an opportunity to live in a rental house owned by my Psychology professor, I was able to have several of the girls in LDs as roommates. Cindy, Lilly and I had been in LDs together last year, and Jaynee and Chris were new this year. There were three weddings that came out of this year (my roommate Jaynee and the boy next door Kevin were one, Jeff/JoyceGuymon, James/JennyWillmore).
Brother Willmore had uploaded all the videoed concerts he had ... I don't see my second year Spring concert up there, but I may have a copy. I'm looking to getting an old VHS tape converted. Mom and Dad were always good at coming down to watch the performances.
After Wendy and Jenny outgrew the baton lessons, Jenny still wanted to perform. Mom signed her up for a cute little song and dance group called Carousel Kids. It was Spring of 1980. Jen still has a cassette tape of some of the songs the group sang (she doesn't have a cassette player though ...) Here's a few of the songs/lyrics she remembers, even 40 years later!
Mom/Margie didn't remember any of these songs (below),
but she remembered the group performed "Wells Fargo Wagon" ...
Walking in the Sunshine: "Tell the blues that I've got news I'm putting on my walking shoes and I feel fine. Ummmmm. Come on in and watch me grin I'm letting all the sunshine in, I've got the time. Ummmm. To go walking in the sunshine. Taking it easy. Living my life now one day at a time. La la la la la la la la la la la, la la la la la la ..."
Ain't Gonna Rain: "Raindrops and teardrops someday when the rain stops I'll find me a new place somewhere in the sun. I'll find me a new place I'll share with someone, and it ain't gonna rain anymore."
Good Friend: "If you let me, I could be your good friend. If you let me, we could walk together. We're not so different you know. Though we may have different dreams. When they fall apart. We hurt the same it seems...
The Inventor's Song:"When you're spelling the word, America, don't forget to dot the i, for the inventors, don't forget to dot the i." I still remember MANY inventors because of this song.
There was a Man: " John Smith, there was a man! Hi Ho Diddle Aye Oh! From Kentucky he began, to make our country grow-ow-ow-ow, make our country grow. Brigham Young, there was a man, hi-ho-diddle-aye-o, down in Utah he began, to make our country grow-ow-ow-ow, make our country grow." I don't know if this "There was a MAN" would be considered politically correct today!
Are You For Independence: This went through the first 13 colonies ... "Connecticut, are you for independence? Are you for the pursuit of happiness? For life and liberty and freedom? Connecticut votes yes!"
The bottom three songs are all "America" themed songs, and some years ago, Jen found an album with them on (America Pie, the Peter Pan Chorus) and was able to get MP3s she has in her Itunes library (along with Music Man! A favorite record from the Westra childhood). And in 2017, Colton's class sang one of the songs during a school program (and he said the other two sounded familiar as well).
In the pictures above, the girl with Jenny was Natalie Lewis, a gal down the street (a year younger than Jen, Natalie's brother Jason was Jen's age) and they were in this singing group together. Jen found a couple mentions about the group in her journal (she didn't write much when she was not quite 10 years old) ...
April 12 Today I started a singing group. I go every Sat. at 10:00
May 17 Singing program and I was so good my grandma gave me $1
Jen would continue to sing - high school musicals and madrigals, community theater, and another song/dance group in college!
